Bidding rules

Any member wishing to act as a local organiser for an Annual Meeting must submit a detailed bid to the Board for approval. If more than one eligible venue is approved by the Board the Council (Board and SIOP Continental Presidents) will decide. The Secretary General will give due notice of deadlines for submission.

Make your nomination known to the SIOP-Board (deadline: June 1 of each year)
Please send all requested information gathered in a bid book (8 x photo-copied) for the attention of the SIOP secretariat
The Board will make a pre-selection
The pre-selected members will be invited to give a short presentation during the Council Meeting. The Council will then decide.
SIOP will always have the financial responsibility (meaning: no local financial enterprises) and therefore SIOP is responsible for the congress budget
SIOP will appoint a professional congress organizer to support you

In order to be considered, bids to host a SIOP Congress must contain the following information:

Names, titles, position and resume (curriculum vitae) of the proposed Local Organising Committee members. Prior experience of committee members in the organization of medical conferences is welcome.
General documentation on the city proposed as venue for the meeting such as:
population, climate, safety, cuisine, infrastructure, attractions, museums, cultural activities, etc.
General documentation on accessibility of the city by air: direct flights to and from, frequency, airline company names etc. Documentation of accessibility by road and rail if relevant. General documentation on the nature and quality of available communication systems (phone, fax, mail etc.)
Brief information about the country such as: political structure and stability, economy and inflation rates, cost of living, infrastructure, diplomatic relations, legal requirements for entry, customs regulations, import/export of currency, taxes, tourist information, availability of government, state or city subsidies.
Specific documentation on the proposed convention center: number and size of meeting rooms and exhibition area, floor plans, security, location, ownership, public transportation to and from, distance to downtown, distance to various hotels.
Information on dates or periods of availability. The conference center should be able to accommodate up to 2000 participants. Information on additional meeting facilities (e.g. in hotels) within walking distance is useful.
Availability of "in-house" services of the convention center such as: audiovisual, simultaneous translation, business center, bank, emergency medical facilities, post office, exhibit construction contractors, customs broker, etc. Information on restrictions in choice of the use of such facilities if other than those available "in house" are selected.
Availability of reliable agencies for housing, transportation, audiovisual services etc., either through city or state tourist bureaus or private companies.
Documentation on hotels: categories, price ranges, distance to conference center, total number of sleeping rooms within walking distance, total number of sleeping rooms within reasonable shuttle bus distance, availability over the proposed congress dates.
Endorsements by local or national societies, local or national health authorities, scientific institutions, civil authorities, government etc., if any.
Possible financial support or guarantees from local or national governments.
List of medical conferences of similar size and duration that have been or will be organized in the same city and/or conference center. References or recommendation of the organizers of any such former meetings, if available.

Your local (city) Tourist Bureau should be able to help you answer most of these questions.

Based on the bids received, the SIOP Secretariat analyses the bids and prepares a comparision for the Board. The Board then decides which venues will be presented to the Council. The Council will then make a decision.

Organisation of the Society meetings
The Organisation of the Society meetings rests with the designated Local Organiser in co-operation with the Board and the Professional Conference Organiser appointed by the Board .

The Scientific Committee will be responsible for the organisation of the scientific programme:

organise and determine type and number of sessions;
approving of invited speakers suggested by the Local Organiser;
selection of scientific papers to be presented.

The Board and Scientific Committee will formulate rules for the submission of papers and similar practical details.